Child, crossing guard struck outside Maplehurst P.S.

Child, crossing guard struck outside Maplehurst P.S.

Police closed off traffic in front of Maplehurst Public School on Plains Road West after a five-year-old girl and a crossing guard were struck by a vehicle this afternoon.

Girl, crossing guard struck by car

Riziero Vertolli – Burlington Post

Post reporter Ian Holroyd (left) interviews Steven Manseau, who was picking up his son from Maplehurst P.S. this afternoon when a car struck a five-year-old girl and a crossing guard in a crosswalk in front of the Plains Road West school.

A young girl is in a Hamilton hospital with serious injuries after being struck by a vehicle outside a Burlington elementary school this afternoon.
Halton Regional Police say the youngster, believed to be five or six years old, suffered an unknown head injury and a broken leg when hit by a vehicle around 3:50 p.m. in front of Maplehurst P.S. on Plains Road East in Aldershot.
She was taken to McMaster Children’s Hospital.
A male crossing guard was also hit by the vehicle at the same time.
Burlington Staff-Sgt. Chris Clarke said the crossing guard sustained minor injuries.
At the scene of the accident, Halton police Sgt. Kevin Baird told the Post the vehicle involved was a beige Nissan Altima driven by an adult male. A beige Nissan with a broken driver’s side mirror remained at the scene, which had been closed to traffic as Halton’s Collision Reconstruction Unit took over the investigation.
Baird also confirmed both the crossing guard and the girl were in the crosswalk in front of the school when they were struck. It is not believed speed or alcohol were contributing factors.
A father picking up his Grade 1 son from the school witnessed the accident and called 911.
“I just saw the car hit the kid and the kid went sliding down the road and the crossing guard kinda fell over cause he got hit too,” Steven Manseau told the Post.
“It was horrible seeing a kid unconscious not knowing if they're alive or not.”
Manseau said because school had just finished for the day there were plenty of people close to the scene of the accident and many of them were crying.
The parent said despite a posted speed limit of 40 km-h in the school zone, not everyone obeys that speed.
“I hate having my kid go to school on a main road like this. Even if it’s 40, it’s not always 40. People don’t go 40,” he said.
As for the crossing guard, Manseau said the elderly man always said hi to him.
“He’s a cheerful guy, you know.”